Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said Monday that Baty could be used in a utility role next season, Abbey Mastracco of the New York Daily News reports.
Baty was used some at second base in the minors last season and Stearns has previously mentioned the outfield as a possibility for the 25-year-old, so the hints at a potential utility role had been there. Of course, Baty's name has also been brought up in trade rumors and his most likely role for the Mets at this point might be as a trade chip.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Might be tried in outfield
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Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns, when speaking Tuesday, didn't rule out the possibility of Baty being tried in the outfield next season, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.
Baty has played a bit of left field in the minors and was used there for one inning with the Mets in 2023, but he hasn't started a game in the outfield since 2022. The Mets were impressed with how he adapted to second base when used there last season, and it appears the team is aiming to continue to increase Baty's defensive versatility.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Joins taxi squad
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Baty is with the Mets in Milwaukee as part of their taxi squad, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
Jesse Winker is dealing with a back issue, which has his status for the National League Wild Card series in question. If Winker is unable to go, it sounds like Baty would be the choice to replace him on the roster. Baty put up a .633 OPS in 50 games during the regular season with the Mets but had a .925 OPS in his final 14 contests at Triple-A Syracuse.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Out with fractured finger
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Baty was diagnosed with a fractured left index finger Sunday and is expected to be sidelined 4-to-6 weeks.
Baty had .997 OPS in his last 12 games with Triple-A Syracuse and had a chance of rejoining the Mets down the stretch, but the injury will instead put him on the injured list for the foreseeable future. The 25-year-old hasn't been ruled out for the season, but any complications in his recovery would make a return this year difficult.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Could get work at second base
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Baty might see action at second base with Triple-A Syracuse, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.
The Mets have struggled to get production from the keystone all season, with Jeff McNeil slumping to a career-worst .624 OPS. Jose Iglesias has filled in admirably against left-handed pitching of late, but the 34-year-old isn't a long-term solution. Baty could get a chance to fill that hole later in the year, especially if McNeil gets traded, but first he'll need to get himself straightened out at the plate -- Baty lost the starting job at third base due to a .229/.306/.327 slash line through 50 big-league games.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Up as 27th man
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The Mets recalled Baty from Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday.
Baty will likely serve as a backup during New York's two-game series against the Phillies in London. He figures to head back to Triple-A once the Mets return to the States, where he'll begin taking reps at second base for the first time in his career.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Will serve as 27th man
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Baty will be recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to serve as the 27th man during this weekend's series in London versus the Phillies, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.
Baty was optioned to Syracuse a week ago following a slow start but has gone 3-for-10 with two home runs in his first two games back in the minors. He will likely operate in a reserve role for the two games in London before being sent back down early next week. Baty also revealed that the plan is for him to get some game reps at second base when he goes back to Syracuse, per Puma.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Demoted to Triple-A
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The Mets optioned Baty to Triple-A Syracuse on Friday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Baty is slashing just .225/.304/.325 this season and has struck out at 34.7 percent clip in May. With the emergence of Mark Vientos (.295/.354/.591), the Mets have elected to send Baty back to the minors in hopes of getting his swing right. Vientos will take over as the club's everyday third baseman.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Heading to bench Wednesday
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Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.
Baty was in the lineup for three of the last four games with the Mets facing four right-handed starting pitchers, but he'll give way to the righty-hitting Mark Vientos on Wednesday while southpaw James Paxton takes the hill for the Dodgers. Vientos should continue to regularly replace the lefty-hitting Baty when the Mets face lefties, but the distribution of starts at third base between the two against right-handed pitching still looks to be up in the air. Baty has helped his cause by getting on base five times in 12 plate appearances over his last three starts, but Vientos owns a 1.085 OPS since his May 15 call-up from Triple-A Syracuse to keep himself in the mix for starts against righties.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Goes yard in Saturday's loss
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Baty went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run in Saturday's 7-2 extra-inning loss to the Giants.
Getting the start at third base and batting eighth, Baty put the Mets ahead 2-1 by taking Sean Hjelle deep in the seventh inning, but Edwin Diaz and the bullpen melted down once again. Baty snapped a 14-game homer drought with the blast, a stretch in which he's stumbled to a .122/.182/.146 slash line with a 42.2 percent strikeout rate while seeing Mark Vientos move past him on the depth chart at third base. While Baty's long ball was encouraging, he also struck out twice more Saturday. Until he solves his contact issues, he'll have a hard time reclaiming the starting job at the hot corner.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Sitting against right-hander again
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Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Guardians, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
The lefty-hitting Baty is on the bench against a right-handed starting pitcher (Triston McKenzie), likely signaling that he's at least temporarily lost hold of his role as the Mets' preferred third baseman. Though he's drawn positive reviews for his work defensively this season, Baty has failed to take a notable step forward at the plate, as he's posted a .611 OPS through 150 plate appearances. Baty has performed especially poorly over the past three weeks, going just 5-for-40 with 19 strikeouts against three walks across a stretch of 13 games. Mark Vientos looks like he'll get an extended look at the hot corner as the Mets look to bolster their slumping offense.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Not starting versus lefty
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Baty isn't in the Mets' lineup Saturday versus the Marlins.
With left-hander Braxton Garrett set to take the mound for Miami, the lefty-hitting Baty will step out of the lineup in favor of Mark Vientos, who will start at third and bat fifth.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Sitting against lefty
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Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.
With a tough lefty (Ranger Suarez) on the hill for Philadelphia, the lefty-hitting Baty will retreat to the bench. The freshly recalled Mark Vientos will get the start at third base and could end up filling the short side of a platoon with Baty while he's up with the big club.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Goes yard twice in loss
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Baty went 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI in Friday's 10-8 loss to the Rays.
The young third baseman took Aaron Civale deep for a three-run blast in the second inning to open the scoring, and he then connected for a solo shot off Jason Adam in the ninth. It was the first multi-homer performance of Baty's big-league career, and it snapped a 27-game drought for the 24-year-old -- his only other long ball in 2024 came back on March 30. Despite the power outage, Baty has taken a big step forward in his development this year, and through 30 contests he's slashing .271/.340/.385, a massive improvement on last season's .212/.275/.323 line.
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Mets' Brett Baty: On bench versus righty
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Baty is out of the lineup for Monday's game versus the Cubs, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
The Cubs have right-hander Jameson Taillon on the mound, but the Mets are rewarding the right-handed-hitting Mark Vientos with a start at third base after he hit a walk-off home run in Sunday's 11-inning win over the Cardinals. Baty is just 3-for-25 at the plate over his last nine games.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Not starting Friday
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Baty (hamstring) is not in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Dodgers.
Baty missed Wednesday's game against the Pirates after experiencing tightness in his left hamstring Tuesday. He did some running and agility tests ahead of Friday's game, but he has not provided a timeline on his return, per Pat Ragazzo of SI.com. Baty has started the season slashing .305/.359/.373 with one home run and nine RBI over 64 plate appearances.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Not expected to need IL stint
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Baty (hamstring) said Wednesday that he's optimistic that he'll avoid the 10-day injured list, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Baty experienced left hamstring tightness during Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Pirates and is out of the lineup for Wednesday's series finale. However, he's feeling much better a day later and won't be sent in for imaging, leaving him confident that he'll be ready to play in a few days. The Mets have an off day Thursday, providing the young third baseman an extra day of rest before he perhaps returns to action this weekend against the Dodgers.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Gets Sunday off
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Baty is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Royals.
With a tough lefty (Cole Ragans) on the bump for Kansas City, the lefty-hitting Baty will give way to Zack Short at third base. Baty will rest for the first time since March 30 after he saw his seven-game hit streak come to an end with an 0-for-4 showing in Saturday's 11-7 loss.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Hit streak at seven games
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Baty went 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and two RBI in Friday's win over the Royals.
The 24-year-old third baseman has started to get a read on big-league pitching. Baty has hit safely in seven straight games and 11 of 13 to begin the season, slashing .327/.365/.408 with a homer, five runs and eight RBI. The power he flashed in the minors isn't showing up consistently yet, but it's likely only a matter of time until it does -- he slugged 10 homers in only 26 games last year at Triple-A.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Three hits in Monday's win
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Baty went 3-for-5 with a run scored in Monday's win over Atlanta.
All three knocks were singles, but it was still another impressive effort from the 24-year-old third baseman. After struggling during his first extended stint in the majors last year, Baty's come out like gangbusters to begin 2024, batting .333 (12-for-36) through 10 games with a homer, four runs, five RBI and a 3:8 BB:K.
